By Scott Meacham
There is very big news this month for individuals and families affected by sickle cell disease (SCD). The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first targeted treatment to reduce the frequency of pain crises in individuals living with SCD.
This new drug — Adakveo® from Novartis — decreases the frequency of the debilitating and unpredictable pain episodes caused by SCD. It is a life-changing medical breakthrough that started in the mind of my across-the-street neighbor, Rodger McEver, M.D., more than 35 years ago.
Rod’s career has been as an academic scientist whose clinical specialty is blood disease. Today, he is vice president of research at OMRF. Back in the eighties, he was at OMRF with a secondary appointment at the University of Oklahoma. That’s when the story of th